Mechanism for distributing slim articles



Dec. 8, 1953 N H TOTAL MECHANISM FOR DISTRIBUTING SLIM ARTICLES 5Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 15, 1952 ATTORNEY Dec. 8, 1953 H. TOTALMECHANISM FOR DISTRIBUTING SLIM ARTICLES 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 15,1952 rA/vEA/wk HEM?) 737741;

Arrow 1 Dec; 8, 1953 H. TOTAL MECHANISM FOR DISTRIBUTING SLIM ARTICLES 3Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed July 15, 1952 Patented Dec. 8, 1953 UNITED STATESATENT OFFICE MECHANISM FOR DISTRIBUTING SLIM ARTICLES Henri Total,Paris, France; assignor to Societe Anonyme dite: Machines AutomatiquesBartlet,

Paris, France 6 Claims.

There are machines, e. g. automatic weighing machines which are designedto deal with such slender commodities as macaroni, spaghetti and likeItalian pastes the average length of which is about ten inches, in whicha distributing mechanism is desirable which is capable of ensuring auniform supply of the product and to stop the flow depending on therequirements.

The present invention has for its object an extremely simple and sturdydistributor whereby such slender commodities can be discharged inperfectly parallel arrangement into receptacles to be filled or onto thepan of ascale and the discharge can be stoppedquite accurately.

The said distributor is comprised essentially of:

(a) A hopper adapted to contain the articles to be distributed, whichincludes three vertical walls and a fourth wall in the shape of aportion ofa cylinder mounted with its axis horizontal and capable ofbeing oscillated aboutthe said axis in a movement of adjustableamplitude and frequency.

The articles are laid in the hopper with their axes substantiallyparallel to that of said oscilt latable cylindrical surface.

The purpose of the vibratory wall is to cause the articles in the bottomof the hopper to sink. progressively while preventing them, owing to thejerks to which they are subjected, from getting intermingled toinextricable vaults.

(b) A shaking floor arranged below the hopper just clear of the threevertical walls of the same while a substantial clearance is left belowthevibratory wall which is adjustable according to the character-andrate of now of the articles to be distributed.

A reciprocatory motion is imparted to said floor which is oi variableamplitude and frequency and which is adapted to cause the articles tocreep towards the point of distribution while removing them from theaction of gravity.

Said floor is provided with side walls adapted to prevent the articlesfrom hanging out and with straightening wires arranged crosswise tangentto the floor. The purpose of said wireswhich are unequal in diameter-isto oppose slight obstacle to the creeping flow of articles while keepingthem at right angles to the direction of the flow. Said wires may bereplaced by low obstacles secured to the floor.

(0) A vertically adjustable flexible baiile arranged above the floorbelow the hopper outlet and adapted to throttle and regulate the flow ofarticles.

(cl) A ranging hand arranged below the throttling screen consisting of aflexible blade to. which an' oscillatory motion of adjustable amplitudeand frequency can be imparted; the gap between said hand and thesubjacent floor is such that only the lower layer of articles areallowed to get through, while the bulk is drawn backwards repeatedly.

(-6) Following the aforesaid ranging hand. a vertically adjustable guidearranged coaxial with the shaking floor and having its outer end flushwiththe end of the latter, the distance of. said guide above said floorbeing such that only one layer of the rod-like products are allowedto'get through even if they were slightly crooked.

An embodiment of the invention will be described hereinafter, referencebeing had to the appended drawing in which:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatical longitudinal sectional view showing themain parts of the distributor.

Figure 2 is a'sectional view taken on line II--Il in Fig. l.

Figures 3 and a show a modification of the ranging hand in frontand sideview respectively.

Figure 5 is a View similar to Fig. 1 showing the actuating means for themovable members together with the control means for the adjustableparts.

Figure 6 illustrates a modification.

The hopper: I includes three fixedwalls and a substantiallyquarter-round oscillatable wall carried by an L-sectioned frame 5swingably mounted on a shaft 4 as shown by the arrows F1, F1.

Thevibratory wall 2 is oscillated by means of an electromagnet 2tadapted to attract a plate 2! connected through a rod 22 with thevertical wall 3. That fixedwall of the *hopper which is. locatedopposite the vibratory wall 2 is slightly bent in at its lower end at Ewhere it nearly reaches the floor t secured to a vibratory support I andformed with side walls it. The direction in which the floor is vibratedis indicated by the arrows F2.

l-iereagain, an electromagnet 23 is used for vibrating the floor. Thesupport I which carries said floor is connected with a fixed stand 21through flexible blades 25. The latter are secured at their ends bymeans of bolts to brackets 25 rigid with support 7 and brackets 26 rigidwith the fixed stand 2'3. Said electromagnet 23 periodic'ally attracts aplate 58 secured to the support The two aforesaid electromagnets areenergized periodically by means of electric sources 5!, 52 to which theyare connected through circuits 58, 5%. A pair of interrupters 53, 54 areactuated by means of a motor '55 driven by belts 56, 57.

The articles (e. g. macaroni) which are shown in end sectional View at 3sink through the hopper and accumulate on the floor to a heap the toplayer is shown at 9 and the thickness of which is determined by theheight of the lower edge of the oscillatory wall 2 above the floor,which height is adjustable owing to the provision of stud-andslot guidesZ329 and -31.

A vertical battle it is secured to a bracket II and is adapted tothrottle the flow of articles, for which purpose a locking peg 33 with aknob 32 is provided by means of which said baffie l6 can be set in anydesired position, that is, its lower edge can be set at any desiredheight above the floor.

As the articles creep on the vibratory fioor past the screen they willheap up at I2 against a ranging hand i 4 secured to an arm 5 which isrocked about a shaft It.

Said arm !5 is rigid with a slotted arm 34 in which is guided a pin 35rigid with a rod 36. The latter is mounted for reciprocatory motion in aguide ill and carries an end follower 38 which cooperates with a camwheel 39 by means of which it is moved up and down and consequently thehand It is moved to and fro. Said cam wheel 39 is rotated by a motor 19through the medium of a belt 50.

Said hand may be of any suitable design. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, ahand M1 made of foam rubber is secured to the end of an arm I51 anddeparts somewhat from the design shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

The hand I4 is arranged above the floor 6 at a distance thereof whichcorresponds to the diameter of the articles 3 in such a manner that onlyone layer of them will be allowed to creep therebelow. The hand 14 maybe arranged for vertical adjustment by any convenient means (not shown)such as the bolt and slot uides 28, 29.

Wires l9 are secured crosswise on the floor 6 in order to keep thearticles ranged.

In order to prevent slightly crooked articles from overlapping adjacentones a longitudinal guide (3 is arranged above the end of the floor 6 ata distance therefrom which can be adjusted owing to the provision of aslot-and-bolt connection idll. The articles then fall into a receptaclell which for instance may be a packing box to be filled or a scale pan.The articles 9 are thus perfectly ranged.

Various modifications may be made in the distributor thus described,notably in the design of the hand and of the vibratory wall of thehopper.

In a modification the electromagnets are replaced by motors such as theone shown in Fig. 6. The variable-speed motor 32 through the medium ofan eco trio i l actuates a rod to which is attache-.1 -o the movablemember to be reciprocated, that to either the wall 3 or the floor l.

What I claim is:

l. A mechanism for distributing macaroni, spaghetti, and like slimcommodities which cornprises a supply hopper havin ee substantiallyvertical fixed walls and s ntially quarterround wall mounted ior osllatory motion about its horizontal axis, a reciprocatable floor withside walls disposed below the hopper crosswise to said a flexible baffiehaving its lower surface positioned adjustable distance above said doorfor re or; articles across the iioor, an os g hand disposed downstreamof bafile adapted to allow a single layer of the articles being handledto creep on the reciprocatable iloor, a longitudinal guide disposeddownstream of ranging hand for preventing crooked articles fromoverlapping adjacent articles, axed obstacles disposed transversely onthe floor to keep tr e articles parallel. means for oscilatin he carter-rou11d hopper wall, means in said and means for oscil. g ng h 2. Amechanism according to claim 1 wherein the means for oscillating thequarter-round hopper well and reciprocating the door consist ofelectromagnets connected for energizetion periodically, plates securedto said wall and said floor respectively to be attracted by the relatedelectromagnet and springs to return the parts to their original positionupon the de-energization of the related electromagnet.

3. A mechanism according to claim 1 wherein the means for oscillatingthe ranging hand consist of a rod pivoted at one end to an arm rigidwith the hand-carrying arm while its opposite end carries a followercooperating with a cam wheel rotated at a variable angular speed.

4. A mechanism according to claim 1, wherein means are provided foradjusting the distance between the reciprocatable floor and theoscillata'ble wall of the hopper, the baffle and the longitudinal guide.

5. A. mechanism according to claim 1 wherein the said obstacles consistof wires spaced along the floor and arranged crosswise thereto.

6. A mechanism according to claim 1 wherein the means to move theoscillatable hopper wall and to reciprocate the floor consist of rodsconnecting each of the related movable parts to an eccentric driven bya. variable-speed motor.

HENRI TOTAL.

No references cited.

